Our First Full Day in Istanbul

We are staying in Sultanahmet district of the Old Town, which means that we are just a couple of short blocks away from many of the "must see" sights here in Istanbul.  Without doing much walking, we visited three of them today. 

Underground Cistern
Built in the 6th century by Byzantine Emperor Justinian, the Underground Cistern is an enormous underground chamber that can and used to store water.  It supplied water to the Great Palace of Constantinople and later to the Topkapi Palace. 

The cistern was restored in the 1980s and the walkways were added to allow public access.  Before the walkways, visistors had to rent boats and row around in the dark.  Rain water still accumulates in the cistern today due to cracks in the mortor, and shockingly the water is teeming with fish, some of it quite large, but the excess water is pumped out regularly.

In the Underground Cistern, by a one of the two Medusa heads "squeezed" in under a pillar

Hagia Sophia
We have been really looking forward to going inside Hagia Sophia--the Great Church of Constantinople (built in the 6th century), later converted into a mosque (15th century), and now a museum. 

In the process of restoration, there has been layers of mosaics uncovered under layers of plaster and paint.  The restoration continues, but you can see parts of these layers in different parts of this magnificent building. 

Nick admiring Viking graffiti (from the 9th century) in Hagia Sophia

Sultan Ahmed Mosque, also known as the Blue Mosque
The mosque, built in early 17th century, is one of many churches and mosques whose architectural design uses many elements of Hagia Sophia.  It is popularly known as the Blue Mosque because the color dominates the wall designs and tiles decorating the mosque's interior.

Inside the inner courtyard of the Blue Mosque, ready to go inside

Unlike Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque is an active mosque, so all visitors are required to have their shoulders and knees covered.  Our faithful guide, Rick Steves, tells us that women should also cover their heads with a scarf.  While it is not required, it is appreciated as a sign of respect.  So we followed his suggestion.

When we left the Blue Mosque, we discovered that a nice gray turned into a rainy and windy one.  So we did not do much of anything else, except for eating an excellent meal at Tarihi Sultanahmet Koftecisi (click on this link to see exactly the food we had).  This restaurant was not only recommended by the venerable Rick Steves, but also by our dear friend, American in London.